South Haven planners delay action on proposed ethanol plant

SOUTH HAVEN — Citing concerns over potential impacts on the environment and quality of life, the South Haven Planning Commission voted tonight to extend a public hearing on a request to build what would be the region’s first sugar-based ethanol plant.

South Haven Redevelopment LLC, which owns the 240,000-square-foot former Bohn Piston plant at 220 Aylworth Ave., in January requested an amendment to the site’s industrial zoning to allow for the production of ethanol on 81,000-square-feet at the site by Grand Rapids-based DeAnza Fuel Group.

The Planning Commission will take up the issue again at its April 1 meeting. Final action on the request rests with the city council.

“We need to gather as much information as we can,” planning commissioner Dave Paull said at tonight's meeting. “It’s not that I’m against it. But it’s got to be in the right place and we’ve got to be real sure it doesn’t negatively affect quality of life.”

DeAnza wants to purchase 67,000 square feet of the property, including the shipping and receiving area, for operations and lease another 14,000 square feet. The company says it would invest $2 million to $6 million in equipment and could employ anywhere from 10 to 15 people in the first phase, with total employment growing to nearly 60 people within a few years.

“This is a heavily regulated industry,” said Dave Dishaw, chief operating officer of DeAnza. Even with city approval, the company would need to obtain several state and federal environmental permits prior to beginning production.

In the first few years, 800,000 to 1 million gallons of ethanol would be produced annually, Dishaw said, with the facility’s maximum production capability being 2 million gallons per year.

Liquid ethanol products made from recycled sugar-based goods — like expired beer, wine, fruit juice, candy and fruit — would be the primary product line, but there would also be byproducts such as fertilizer and animal feed.

Some residents tonight spoke out against the plant, expressing concerned it would emit unpleasant odors and about the plant’s close proximity to residential areas.

“I moved here for the clean air. This is a resort town,” said Susan Ryan, who in 2008 retired to South Haven from Louisville, Ky. “It’s a good idea, but it’s not the right place for it.”